Why Won't My Honeysuckle Bloom?

Honeysuckle attracts hummingbirds.

Honeysuckle is a woody perennial plant with vining stems and trumpet-shaped flowers. Honeysuckle grows easily, with its flowers attracting hummingbirds and butterflies. When your honeysuckle does not bloom, it may be due to pruning, rejuvenation or weather problems.

Pruning

Honeysuckle flowers in spring and summer. Prune right after blooming, as flowering wood produced this summer bears next season's blooms. Pruning early in spring cuts off the buds for the current season's flowers.

Rejuvenation

Rejuvenate overgrown honeysuckle by cutting it back to the ground in early spring. Honeysuckle rebounds with new growth. Thin out new growth to the strongest vines or canes. Honeysuckle does not bloom during the rejuvenation year. It will flower next year on this year's new wood.

Weather

Honeysuckle survives cold temperatures, but extreme cold can freeze it to the ground. This hard freeze may kill the above-ground bush, including the flowering wood. Cut off the winter-killed canes during spring cleanup. Water deeply after pruning; this restores moisture to the roots. Your honeysuckle grows back if roots survived the winter. Expect it to resume flowering next year.

References

• University of Florida IFAS Extension; Trumpet Honeysuckle; Edward F. Gilman; 2009
• Colorado State University Extension; Pruning Flowering Shrubs; David Whiting, et al.; 2004